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11.01.2011

Gluten Free?

For a while now, I've been wondering if I'm sensitive to gluten. I know I'm not allergic to it or have Celiacs, but I think I may be sensitive. So I decided to cut out gluten for the month of November to see how I feel.

I have a few reasons for doing this, one of them being my belief I may be sensitive to gluten. One other reason is that I eat a lot of gluten....and I mean a lot. I typically start the day with cereal. I eat sandwiches for lunch, and dinner if I'm rushed for time. I eat bagels, pasta, crackers, etc. I don't remember the last time I went an entire day without a piece of bread. My second reason to cut out gluten is to force me to find other foods to eat. I'm not buying gluten free bread, cereal or bagels, at least for the month of November. I'm trying to stick with foods that are naturally gluten free. This will keep me from taking short cuts and living off cereal and sandwiches. If I continue with gluten free living, I'll buy some of those products from time to time.

Another reason is that the more I read about grains, the more convinced I'm becoming that they're not good for you....especially wheat. I'm still eating grains like quinoa right now because I'm not yet fully convinced grains are bad for you. More research is needed.

One problem with my experiment is that I'm not only cutting out gluten, so if I feel great at the end of the month it will be hard to tell for sure if it's the lack of gluten or the improved diet. Ideally, I would eat the same foods while only cutting out gluten. But I've decided to use this as an opportunity to make changes to my diet and eat healthier overall. I'll eat some gluten at the end of the month to see how I react.

My rules for my gluten free month: - No gluten/wheat (obviously) - No candy with the exception of dark chocolate - Fish at least twice a week - A salad every day